


Boundaries.

by SarahPeabs



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Developing Relationship, F/M, Independence, Love Triangles, teen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-08-08
Updated: 2013-08-08
Packaged: 2017-12-22 20:26:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/917683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SarahPeabs/pseuds/SarahPeabs





	Boundaries.

I was in the middle of my newly inducted school-is-finally-out-for-summer ritual of waking up late and immediately immersing myself on my laptop when I heard a knock on my bedroom door.

"Yeahhhh?" I drawled, not really paying attention.

"It's me, sweetheart." Mom said, slowly walking in. She started to say something about how it is unhealthy for a 17-year-old to stay in bed past noon, but stopped when she saw the state of my room. Clothes strewn across floor and leftover dirty dishes masked the meticulously designed and decorated spacious bedroom. "Oh, Nicole, honey, why don't you let Miranda come and clean in here? It's a mess!"

"I don't want other people going through my things, or having to clean up after me," I responded automatically. We had been through this a thousand times already. "It's not like anybody but me even comes into this wing of the house," I added with a mutter.

"It doesn't matter, that's her job, that's what we pay her for!" She sighed in the exasperated way perfected by mothers. "Well, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about, anyways." She paused for a long time, collecting her thoughts. When she spoke again, her voice sounded different. Tighter, like her throat didn't want to let the words she was about to say escape.

"I need you to listen to me, darling. You know that we all have responsibilities in this family, right? That we all must do what will be best for your father's company?"

"Mm-hm," I mumbled, still lost in the labyrinth of the internet. Her sudden show of motherly affection was weird, but I brushed it off as her lamenting the passing of time. She and my father had been talking about my upcoming eighteenth birthday for weeks now.

"Nicole!" Mom's sharp voice ripped my attention from the screen. "Will you please put that thing down while I am talking to you?"

I shoved my laptop off to the side of the bed and scooched back against the headboard. I looked at my mother for the first time since she came in, and swallowed hard. Stress was etched in the suddenly visible wrinkles around her eyes. Her usual impeccable pantsuit had crinkles on her thighs, almost as if she had been nervously running her hands against them. She looked older, not her usual appearance-absorbed self that came along with being the wife of a wealthy and powerful businessman.

"Mom, what's wrong? Is everything alright?" I asked with a slight waver in my voice.

"You do understand sacrifice and responsibility, right? And your father and I want the best future for you, and for the family name?"

"Oh, not the future speech again. Yes, I know. I'm going to either Princeton or Yale as a legacy of you or dad. I'll join a sorority, get connections, and graduate with a degree in business and minor in a foreign language. I'll move back here to L.A., meet a fellow socialite guy, fall in love, and eventually take over the business. We've been talking about this pratically since I was born," I ended with a resigned huff of breath.

My mother slowly nodded her head. "Yes, but that's not the only thing we, your father and I, have been talking about since your birth. Do you remember Donald Nelson? No? He is your father's biggest investor, and has been since the company has started. They even went to college together: Nelson and Holmes, the dynamic duo of the Yale School of Management. Ever since they partnered together, they dreamed of bringing their wealth and power together in a more... permanent way."

I groaned inwardly. "Mooooom, can you please hurry up and tell me what this has to do with me? I kinda have to go to the bathroom," I said as I bounced me knee anxiously. I hadn't gotten out of bed yet and I was starting to feel the multiple sodas I had the night before.

She continued her speech, completely ignoring me. "When you were born, and the Nelsons had already been blessed with a son, your father came up with the idea of a union, not of the companies, but of our children." She saw my blank look and clarified herself with force, "Nicole, you are arranged to marry the Nelson's son, Joshua. It is your duty as the only child of the Holmes family and the caretaker of the name and business."

"Wait, what? _Marriage?_ " For the first time, the word felt cold and foreign on my tongue. "You're joking, right? You can't just mess with people's lives like this! This is America; it's the 21st fucking century! No one has arranged marriages anymore!" I nearly shrieked.

Other than a slight blaze in her eyes blazed at the dropped f-bomb, my mom's face stayed stony and impassive,  "Consider this your official engagment. We are having dinner with the Nelsons tomorrow evening. There you will meet them all and we will discuss what the future will hold for you and your fiancé. Here is my credit card. Go and buy a new dress, something to make a good first impression." She placed the unlimited-budget card on my desk and left me to stew in my turmoil of emotions.

When I felt I could move again, I grabbed the credit card, an overnight bag, and my car keys and headed to my best friend's house for support. She was spending the first days of summer at her country ranch with her grandfather, which was a good hour away. The long drive gave me time to get myself under control. I only had to pull over once after a particularly sappy love song on the radio reduced me to tears at the thought of never being able to feel that way about anyone. That's when it hit me that I'd never get the chance to fall in love. After that, I turned off the radio and listen to my iPod instead, letting my mind and heartache drift away in a mixture of booming basses and thrumming guitars.


End file.
